Not the only outcast
by TheBeginingsEnd
Summary: A girl that's forced into the life she doesn't want and then there's Hiccup in a similar situation. Can two misfits make a person?  Hiccup x OC ,eventual Toothless x OC
1. Chapter 1

I love this movie,watched it at least 13 times in one weekend once,I'm not sure if it's any good though,but the H.T.T.Y.D archive is so small ,I felt the need to add to chapter is a combo of 2 separate chapters,the first was deleted,the second was rewritten out of fear of forgetting the original,and then I found it again. I decided to pick out the pieces that seemed to work the best chapter was 1,576 words after mix-matching the 2 it came to be 2,685...I've created a monster (T -T)

I do not own H.T.T.Y.D

Berk,a small Viking village on an small island, it's not tropical and it snows nine months of the year .The locals? They're relatively friendly,if your normal inside and out,and conform to society in every problems? Yeah,I could name a few, the food's almost tasteless,and it's always meat,meat,meat, and fish which the Vikings...think of as the equivalent to salad,it's dull on a good day,and life's always hanging in the balance here because of the some places have mice or a swarm of locusts we have dragons,yes the scaly, fire breathing type,what else? They burn down our houses,steal our food supplies and when it's Winter three-fourths of the year that's a problem,then when they raid the village for it someone usually gets killed or what I mean by life hanging in the balance?

Everyone's too stubborn to move,stupid macho Vikings,they've never once as far as anyone can remember even considered leaving the island for safer land. I myself would have left long ago,if I wasn't stuck between a rock and a hard spot I would have packed up and moved on with or without the rest of the village,even if I'm not an adult yet,but I couldn't if I wanted I were to leave the whole village would be in chaos,because they can't possibly think for themselves. As the next Elder of the entire village I must stay, and I was chosen for the stupidest reasons, one : My hair, I was born with is silver , a sign of wisdom in the village's eyes and two : I am the current Elder's great-great granddaughter

I have a position of power to fill weather I want to or not,call it a forced destiny if you will,no mater how much I don't want it,I will always be and always have been shoved and prodded into that role since the moment I was ,the villagers shun me and act like I don't exist,if I do they refer to me as ' the Elder's great-great granddaughter. ' or ' the Apprentice Elder ', never Torrent.

At least the other tribe misfit,Hiccup,had a name. Hiccup was my age,the Chief's only child , and thus the next Chief,sadly,he was nothing a Viking should be,he was and is smart,sarcastic,extremely nice, but scrawny with no muscle or one saw past his reputation of tribe jinx though,even his own father didn't see him for what he was ,in fact Stoick,Hiccup's dad, seemed only embarrassed by boy, at least the other teens notice him though,but just long enough to laugh at him.

It seemed though,the Gods had different plans for us,going farther than ' the weird looking girl ' and ' the village jinx ' . ' With power comes responsibility ' pfft,more like ' with power comes more problems '

I was sitting in the middle of my favorite field, it was way back in the forest that surrounded Berk and took up most of the island,even though I was here for a job I liked coming to the field ,it was quiet and away from the eyes of the village. I was looking for herbs and berries those sort of things,besides being in the next Elder I was also a apprentice Healer, I liked the job actually,spending countless hours in the woods the forest I had peace of mind,but it didn't take long for that day's peace of mind to fall I heard something crashing threw the bushes and getting closer with each passing second.,I scrambled over to my basket a few yards away grabbing it and getting ready to bolt if there was need to.

At the other end of the field,someone came crashing threw the last of the brush and stumbled to a halt,putting their hand s on their knees for support,even from the other end of the field it was easy to tell how out of breath they were,no surprise there, this spot was in the middle of no where. I eyed the newcomer,a slender frame,tall,short hair,,but it we were to far away from each other for me to really see any other details. I left my basket behind and started making my way over to the boy without a sound ,not wanting to startle him.

I made my way across the field as quietly as possible,maybe there was some way I could help,even if it was just something little,I took off the sky blue bandanna I'd been wearing on my head to keep my hair back as I was the time I made it over Hiccup his breathing had steadied a little,but I could see the tears dripping from his face to the ground still and his hands on his knees were clenched into fists.

It didn't take me long to figure out that it was Hiccup,the scrawny build and lack of muscle helped,at first though I had thought he was a girl,but then again he was to tall.. I wondered what disaster had happened this time, there was always closer I got the easier it was to hear the sobbing,that explained why he was out this far,no self respecting Viking ever cried,or at least not anywhere near another person ,if it was never seen or heard it never happened.,but I had never seen him this upset before,it worried me. Sympathy shot threw me like a lightening bolt,the poor boy,neither of us were dealt a fair hand, so I felt a good amount of warmth towards my fellow outcast.

After hesitating for a couple of seconds I put a hand on Hiccup shoulder and his head snapped up, Hiccup's face flushed from crying,eyes tinged red,tears still forming in the corners and wide with shock,his was mouth hanging open as he tried to come up with a excuse.

" I-uh umm I was..."

I ignored his stammering,my had was still on his shoulder "Are you alright?"

Hiccup stared at me for a minute mouth hanging open,I smiled bent down to his level and wiped the remaining tears off his face with the wrist of my sleeve,hiccups stiffened at my touch and breathed in sharply. I backed off a little looking him over, letting him breathe.

Poor boy,he'd probably ran all this way out here just to get away from those stupid villagers I gave him a small smile,taking in his appearance,I'd never seen him up close before,But I got side tracked by the multiple angry red burns on his face,neck and hands, not to mention the still bleeding cuts. Otherwise he was rather comical,Hiccup's singed clothes,hair, and eyebrows and the twigs and leaves that clung to his vest and tangled in his hair, added to the fact he was just staring at me like an idiot. I could smell smoke on him,but I couldn't figure out why Hiccup reeked of over cooked fish though.

"Those burns are going to really hurt , and those cuts will get infected if you don't do something soon" I mumbled,feeling like I should help my fellow outcast.

Hiccup stood up brushing off the leaves and twigs "I'm fine,nothing I can't handle" He was trying to act all tough.

I smiled deciding to twist his arm a little "Fine ," I turned around and started walking back to my spot "don't blame me when those cuts get infected and they have to amputate,I've seen it happen before"

Hiccup stop breathing for a second "Hey! Wait up,what are you doing this far out anyway?"

He ran to catch up, soon he was right next to me,I tried not to smile.

"I'm collecting plants for Thistle,she thinks there's going to be some type of sickness out break soon,I'll probably be out here till dark trying to find everything"

Hiccup nodded understanding who I was talking about,Thistle was the Head Healer,my...Master of sorts and my mother figure,since both of my parents died in a dragon attack right after I was born. I looked over at Hiccup,who was now frowning."Do you want help?,I'm...not in a hurry to go back home "he muttered almost like he was afraid to ask

A smile crept onto my face "If you want to use me as an excuse for staying out of the village for a while,I don't mind, you can just help me find some herbs" I suggested motioning towards the large basket had placed in a rock,hell I wouldn't want to go back if I was him either.

Hiccup smiled "That's not a bad idea,...umm" he frowned and looked at me in a ' I'm sorry ' way

The smile on my face faltered,did anyone here know me? "Torrent"

"Right,the Elder's Great-Great Granddaughter "

"And you're just the Chief's son ! " I snapped,and immediately regretted it. Hiccup had stopped dead in his tracks and for the third time that day he was staring at me with his mouth hanging open. I shook my head and sighed,it wasn't right to take my frustration out on him "Sorry,it's just you of all people ,I figured would understand"

Hiccup mouth formed an O shape and began walking next to me again "Sorry,I should have known better,he looked at me again and smiled a little then added"Torrent,"he let the name sink in,there was that warm- happy feeling again "What are we looking for again ?"

I shook my head "So presumptuous,First,"I said grabbing him by the elbow,dragging him over to the basket, which I started rummaging around in,sticking half of my body in it to reach the bottom trying to reach the bottom were I knew the right herb was and speaking to him the whole time. "We need to fix you up,those cuts will defiantly get infected, if you help me" I pulled myself out of the basket,bring out a thick,green stem. "Here" I tossed it to him,Hiccup fumbled but caught it any way "Rub the broken end on the cuts and burns,it's called Aloe,it'll cool the burn and let the cuts heal faster"

"A plant can do that?" He asked eying it skeptically,I laughed.

"The _right_ plant will do that"

Hiccup shrugged,afterwards I told him to keep it fore later,he'd need it.

I dove back into the basket bringing out four more herbs"OK ,now I want to look for more of these" I held out my other hand showing him a plant it had a long stem with a large pair of leaves sticking out on each side every inch or so,at the top were small pink-purple flowers"It's called a Skullcap ,we make a tea out of it "

"What's it do?"

"It's for stress headaches,helps you sleep"

I showed him two similar herbs,both had long green stems with leaves on the side,one had small white flowers with yellow middles,the other had completely yellow flowers,otherwise they looked the same.

" The one with the white flowers is called Yarrow,the yellow one is called Elder flowers"We both chuckled at the irony, "We use these and peppermint leaves to make a tea for fevers and flus, but I've already collected all of the peppermint so don't worry about those. " I held up the last one,it looked like a green clover with small pink flowers on the top and it had a long stem"This is-"

"Thyme"He said, smiling impishly at me,I smiled back

"Do you know what it's for?"

"No"

"Colds, asthma, Nightmares, stomach infections"

Hiccup looked surprised "Cool"

I stopped and scrunched my eyebrows together,then laughed " We sound like little kids,that just got new toys"

We laughed and then go to work,it was midday when we started, passing the time by chatting .Hiccup was crouching down in his own section picking Thyme,I was looking around in my own section.

"So are you going to tell me what you managed to unleash on the village or not?" I figured that he's released one of the dragons from the training area somehow.

" I didn't unleash anything!" Hiccup said angrily,standing up and depositing his share of thyme in the basket "I,uh...umm" he hung his head.

I stood up tossing my share in as well "Come on,spit it out. I don't care what you did,I respect you-"

I smiled wryly as his head popped back up,and continued what I was saying "as a public menace,"

Hiccup groaned "But,I'd also rather be a public menace,more than anything else"

This time Hiccup smiled at me "I managed to set the Smithery on fire while I was in it and I took out the fish market next door"

I smiled and began clapping,trying not to laugh "You sir,have outdone yourself this time"

He looked at me like I was nuts "I just depleted our food supply by a third !"

" I never really liked fish anyway. you've got talent ,you know that?" That did it,my knees buckled under me ,I was laughing so hard,eventually he joined me on the ground,he finally saw the humor in it I the time we finished laughing it was dark. Hiccup got up,pulling me up as well

"I think we should get back to the village"he looked in the basket then back at me "Is this enough?"

"Yeah ,you're right"I said glancing up at the sky which was becoming increasingly dark,then into the basket"We've got more than enough,Thistle will be happy with this"I grabbed the basket and began hoisting it onto my back when Hiccup took it from me.

"No," He continued by slinging it over his back "I've got it"

I watched him as he stumbled a little from the weight,the basket was surprisingly heavy,I knew from experience "Are you sure?"

Hiccup cut me off,shaking his head "It's fine"

"Thanks"

We set off towards the village,it took us over an hour to make it back, and Hiccup carried the basket all the way home for me .We stopped at the Healer's den first. I took the basket from Hiccup and set it on the inside of the door,noting that Thistle must have gone home for the night, most people were inside asleep as well. I and went back to Hiccup,who was waiting for me which was surprising.

"I figured I'd walk you home" he said looking anywhere but at me,I didn't really notice it though.

"Ah,well actually I live here," I jerked a thumb back motioning at then den ",thanks for the offer anyway"

"Oh," This seemed to shock him a little " I better head home then,before dad starts a search party" He seemed a bit down again"We should hang out more"

"Yeah," I said bluntly,I probably needed to be around someone besides Thistle and he seemed like a nice guy " Thanks for the help today,if you ever need a excuse for escaping you know where to find me"

Hiccup smiled "You make it sound like I won't"He looked up at the moon which was close to being a quarter threw the sky "I'd better get home,get the yelling over with before midnight"

I frowned "Well,good luck with that"

Hiccup looked up at the moon which was a quarter way across the sky now "I guess I'll see you around then"

"Yep"

I watched as Hiccup made his way home,it wasn't hard,considering his house was on the highest hill and the path was lit by torches. Hiccup stumbled and fell on his way up I laughed a little,I'd never met someone so prone to stumbling,I couldn't help but think that I wasn't the one who needed to be walked home,no matter how nice the gesture was. I went inside when he reached the door,maybe Berk wasn't completely made up of idiots.


	2. Chapter 2

This chapter was a original, not a mixed breed like the first. Since the first one was so long I had to add to chapter 2 ,I hope to keep it above 2,000 words a for some chapters I'm happy to expand like the next one, but this chapter I thought was good were it was( so having a long Author's note at the beginning helps ( ^o^ )). Other than that,I have to say that I like Thistle ,she reminds me of a mix of my mom and a female Gobber.

(Refer to chapter 1 )

It was a couple of days before I saw Hiccup again,just as Thistle predicted there was a flu out break going on and so I was kept busy ' _My stomach's upset_ ' ' _I feel like my head's splitting in two_',I think it was the fourth day into the flu fiasco when she said I had earned time off .

"Go outside,be a kid " Thistle laughed,grinding a plant into dust with a round stone,then depositing it into a small pot of boiling water,I don't know how she kept so up beat ,we'd been running full steam for more than half a week"Look,"she pointed out the window,pretending to be surprised"kids your own age!"

The kids were what I referred to as The Fab Five,Snotlout a self absorbed boy, if he wasn't stuck on a girl and Hiccup's bully of a cousin,a complete opposite. Fishlegs was an intelligent,but odd boy,the others took him for granted. Ruffnut and Tuffnut the twins the first the younger girl the second the older boy,both were relatively mean and even meaner to each other. Finally there's Astrid she has a great figure,skinny, blonde-haired,blue-eyed and the perfect dragon killing were just all standing out there near the village square talking,probably about killing something.

Thistle walked over to the door and opened it,smiling "Go,"she waved her handing in front of the door "be free "

I looked at her weird "How about I go upstairs and get dressed first,okay?" I stood up from my chair putting away the book I was almost afternoon,I had slept in and had planned to catch up on the new entries in the medicine book. I was still in my sleeping cloths ,just a large black Tunic that went below my knees.

I got dressed in my regular clothes,a dark navy blue tunic with long sleeves,the bottom of the tunic went down to just above my knees, black pants,a pair of shin length,gray,furry boots with four white claws sticking out of the toes on both of the boots and a matching vest. with a hood on the hood gave the appearance of a wolf's head on top of my own,like it was watching over me,or I was the wolf,I forget which one the Elder had told hood even had fake eyes along with the front canines.

The wolf was the symbol of wisdom in the village ,so it was the symbol of the Elders as well. considering I was younger I could pull off this style, but the current Elder just wore a ring shaped like a wolf,her staff also had wolves carved into it,I remember tracing them with my fingers as a child.

After combing out my hair,it was a silver as I said before,it was short compared to the other girls here,it only went down to right above my shoulders,the ends flipped out in a messy manner but otherwise it was straight,I chopped it into layers so it stuck out and spiked a little in the back.

Looking in the mirror one last time before I left I thought the same thing I did every day,it was probably my own fault I was an outcast,just by my hair style and fashion I was different,not ,even Astrid was girly,she wore a skirt and had medium length braided hair.

Thistle ushered me out the door as soon as I was down from my room,pushing me out the door and abruptly slamming it.

_Does she really want me out that bad?_

I put my hood up,it was cold outside still , a slight fog covered the ground turned to see if the Fab Five was still lurking around. I wouldn't talk to them unless it was absolutely necessary and sadly that day it was. While I was changing Hiccup had ambled into the danger zone,Tuffnut ,Ruffnut and Snotlout had started something,Fishlegs watched the whole thing and Astrid wasn't even paying attention,I really disliked them all.

Hiccup was losing at whatever argument they were having, Tuffnut pushed him back a little then Snotlout almost knocked him down,it was getting physical now,I decided to intervened for Hiccup's sake and made a bee line for him, when I got there I acted like everything was normal. Tuffnut ,Ruffnut and Snotlout stared at me as if I'd just sprouted a dragon head on my shoulder.

"Hey Hiccup"I smiled,putting my hand on his shoulder,he swung around surprised blocking me momentarily from the others,I winked at him."I was wondering if you still wanted to take me up on that _offer _we talked about the other day,I'm free now so travel time won't be an issue"

Hiccup smiled the biggest smile I had ever seen in my life,I breathed a sigh of relief for a minute I though he forgot about me "Yeah,let's grab some supplies and get going"

We were about to leave,but then Snotlout started speaking to us,common courtesy made us stop.

"Hey,we were talking to Useless there," Snotlout said with a bit of anger in his voice ,jerking a thumb at Hiccup,I'd forgotten that was Hiccup's nickname given to him by Snotlout "Until you interrupted us and just who are you? I've never even seen you before"

Ruffnut and Tuffnut both elbowed him in the ribs at the same time,they also had the same wide eyed look on their faces "Stupid she's-"Ruffnut began "the Apprentice Elder "Tuffnut finished. Fishlegs looked at me with a type of awe,Astrid on the other hand was watching us with a flat,dead kind of look. I gave them an annoyed look,I walked around the village all the time for Thistle,they knew who I was.

"She?"Snotlout snorted,completely unfazed

I frowned not sure weather to be more upset that I was mistaken for a guy,that I was invisible or that they used a title name once again,Hiccup must have noticed,he surprised me by sticking up for me.

"_Her _name is _Torrent_"He said with a hint of venom,I didn't even know he had venom in him."Let's go"Hiccup steered me away by the shoulders,we went behind a house out of their line of sight and stopped.

"That was great! I've never... You were...wow"

I laughed at how speechless Hiccup was "It was nothing,that's what friends do right?"

"Right"

"But you were like a different person! Amazing! And here I thought that you were just an all over nice guy " I said shaking my head Hiccup's eyebrows raised in surprise,maybe he'd never had more than one complement in a stomach growled a little at that moment,not loud enough for him to hear though,I took that as a que on what to do next " Have you had lunch yet?"

Hiccup raised his eyebrows again at my eagerness,what can I say? I like food "No,I usually don't eat lunch"

"Why not?"

"Well,"He shrugged and rubbed his other arm " You saw what happened out at the square. Why would I want go through that in front of most of the tribe?"

"What are you worried about,if they go after you,I'll curse their families when I become the Elder" I grinned and started dragging him towards the village Mess hall/meeting place for the adult

Vikings "While you have lunch,I'll have my breakfast"

"You haven't even had breakfast yet?"he asked,still bemused by the idea of me cursing the Fab Five

"I woke up about an... hour ago,it's my day off so... I got to sleep in " I panted as we stopped in front of the mess hall

"Oh yeah"Hiccup was completely fine,not out of breath at all.

We walked into the hall,grabbing two small roasted chickens off the serving table ,the hall was partially filled,but we still moved threw the crowd like ghosts. Hiccup's father,Stoick the Vast was sitting at the main table with his second in command and Gobber the Blacksmith,his best friend .It was a large oval table sitting in the middle of the hall, with the center cut out and in place a fire in the middle to keep the hall warm, hanging above that was a giant golden dragon ,it had a sword going all the way threw it at an dragon writhed in pain, it's mouth opened in a scream.

"Should I even ask if you want to go sit with Stoick instead?" I already knew that their relationship was strained. Stoick had very little parenting skills, and Hiccup inherited his,...awkwardness from him as well.

Hiccup didn't even give the table a glance when he gave a flat "No"We decided on a table in a deserted corner,the chicken was warm still at least,Hiccup poked at his and I attacked mine,he snorted as he watched me.

I stopped mid stab,going for the next leg"What?"

"Well, you look like a wolf attacking her prey,it gives ' wolfing it down,' " Hiccup began making air quotes "a whole new view" He was trying not to laugh the entire time,but his eyes still did.

I choked a little on the chicken I'd just swallowed "I'm hungry. " and then shot him a look "Sorry if I don't bulk up like the rest of the village,I'm also sorry that I'm not a twig like Astrid" I already knew he idolized her to a almost sick extent,it wasn't hard to figure out.

Hiccup stared at me a minute,mouth open again,I rolled my eyes and continued eating,this time slower. I happened catch Stoick staring at us out of the corner of my eye."Hey, you're dad's watching us"I muttered under my breath, half hoping that he didn't hear.

Hiccup groaned softly and banged his forehead on the table "I am sooo sorry for whatever is about to happen " I guess he was over my little out burst,I really needed to get those under control.

"Maybe nothing will-"I started

"No,"he said lifting his head up"look"

Hiccup was right,Stoick and Gobber were up and coming our way,Hiccup shot me a quick look that seemed to say _"Just play along"_.Gobber and Stoick had made it to the table already,I tried to shrink back against the wall,the two were sort of imposing.

Hiccup turned around in his seat to face them,he had a bored tone to his do I get the feeling he can be a good liar when he wants to be? " Gobber,Dad,fancy seeing you here"

"Hiccup,"Gobber said,glancing at me in a curious way ,then he turned back to Hiccup "I've got ten swords to remake and sharpen today,I don't suppose you could lend a hand?"

Stoick had been watching me the entire time, not even really focusing on his son ,wow, I felt uncomfortable and sinking lower into my chair hadn't helped any. Haven't they ever seen Hiccup with a friend before?

Hiccup inhaled deeply before launching into an excuse"Well,actually I figured that since I still have a free pass,from that bet about if I could make it all the way to Raven's Point and back in half a day"Hiccup stopped as Gobber sighed,I guess he lost a lot more than having to give Hiccup a free pass."I was wondering if I could take today off,you see Torrent said she'd show me this cave,she found a while back,it has these rocks in the front that makes it look like the cave has teeth"

I had an idea and piped up "Yeah,and he doesn't believe me at all,so can you let him go for the day?"

The two older Vikings shared a amused look,Stoick was the first to speak,"I don't see why not"he shrugged,a smile played on his lips, I wondered why.

Gobber answered not long after the Chief "I can handle it on my own,having you around is making me lazy anyway"

"But,"Stoick began,he glanced at me again" I need to talk to Hiccup alone first"

I edged my way around the table,avoiding the seemingly giant-sized Vikings and stood up "Of course,I'll be down at the Healer's den when you need me"I started walking away,but caught Hiccup begging me not to go silently,I smiled and looked back up at Stoick ,who hadn't noticed,he never noticed his son's reactions ,but was patiently waiting for me to leave along side Gobber." Take as long as you like,I'm in no hurry" With that I left Hiccup to the mercy of the gods.

Poor Hiccup, a friend will help you,but a best friend likes to watch you squirm, lol. R&R please


	3. Chapter 3

This is the last chapter...that I had up and ready to go,don't worry (^-^) Warning :This chapter has a micro amount of fluff, I can't help myself.

(Refer to chapter 1 )

Hiccup was so angry at me for leaving him to suffer at the hands of Gobber and his dad ,he wouldn't let it go,even months later,the odd thing was though that any time I asked what they had talked about,because he let it slip that I'd been a subject,Hiccup would refuse to tell me, he actually ran away and avoided me for two days,he finally started coming around again today,he had promised to help me collect herbs,that was what I liked about him,Hiccup was a nice guy and always tried his hardest not to break promises.

"So we're looking for the same ones again? Yarrow,that's the one with all the little white flowers clustered at the top? And Elder flowers look the same,except they're smaller and yellow?" Hiccup questioned

I nodded and started looking around the forest for them "Yep,the Elder flowers grow on trees and they only blossom at this time during the summer,but we've been lucky lately and they've been blooming off and on,no clue why though, but the more we can bring back the better,remember leave a couple so they spread for nest year's harvest,okay?"

"Got ya"

We started searching for them in the early afternoon by the time we were done it was only four or so,we decided to head up to Raven Point,just to waste time. We sat on a large bolder back to back,his legs dangled off the bolder,mine folded in front of me at an angle so they made a triangle shape,it was more comfortable then it sounded. Hiccup had gone silent a while ago and I wondered if he was sleeping,his breathing was definitely calm enough,I could feel the slow rise and fall of his shoulders against mine.

"Do you ever wish you were a bird or something?"He asked out of the blue,his voice was calmer than usual. I jumped a little,but I wondered what he meant though,a bird?

"What do you mean?"I twisted my neck around to look at him,his head was tilted up to the sky watching the Seagulls drifting on the breeze.

"If we were birds be wouldn't be stuck on this island,there'd be no one to stop us,we could come and go anytime we wanted,and no one could control us and tell us what we have to be"

"Well,when you put it that way,"I stopped to think,then spoke again"yeah,all the time"

Hiccup swung himself around to face me,I had been resting against him,but when he turned I fell backwards,landing on his chest. Hiccup almost tumbled off the bolder,he ended up supporting himself with a hand stretched out behind him,pushing himself up,the other straight down at his side. I sat up,catching my balance for a second ,then dropping off the side of the boulder with a ' thump ' a sharp pain shot threw my head and I blacked out.

When I came to Hiccup was carrying me bridal style,the basket full of the herbs we'd collected earlier was on his back,he struggled walking slower than he usually did. After blinking several times everything finally came into full focus,it was completely dark now,off in the distance I heard the tell tale signs of a raid in the village,screams of dragons mixed with the battle cries of Vikings,the faint scent of smoke drifted in the air.

"Hi-Hiccup" I muttered,squirming a little,wanting down.

Hiccup glanced down,stopping for a second to shush me "Quiet, until we find a safe spot,and I'm not letting you walk ,you have a lump the size of a small dragon egg on the back of your head"

I lifted my hand to my head,lightly brushing the back and flinching when I found said lump. Hiccup hadn't been exaggerating that much when he said it was the size of a small dragon egg. Hiccup shot me another look as I inhaled sharply,like he was reprimanding me for touching it,I gave him a sheepish smile.

After a while I drifted off again, only to be woken up by Hiccup."Come on wake up,wake up,"Hiccup shifted his arms a little trying shake me awake as gently as possible "up!" This time it sounded more like a irritated command,I opened my eyes and glared at him.

"And I was out like a light too,I never sleep like that!"

He huffed and lowered me to the ground before shrugging off the basket and shifting my head in his hands,so he could examine the sounds of the raid where still in the distance,but I could no longer smell the smoke,this made me wonder where we were. Looking around didn't help much,it was very dark there I could barely see 3 feet in front of myself., it wasn't until Hiccup decided to leave my lump alone and lit a small fire out of the leaves and sticks that I figured out he'd taken us into a cave that's entrance was small enough that a Nadder wouldn't get through but still big enough that a Terrible Terror or a Gronckle could.

The Deadly Nadder was a large ,mostly Robin's egg blue dragon with while speckles and yellow horns all over its upper part of it's body it could launch them off itself for an 's head and feet were a little too big for it's body,giving it a cute ,I said cute,even if I am a Viking that lives in a dragon hating village,anyway the Nadder was definitely the most bird-like of the dragons.

The Gronckle was a Medium sized dragon with sort legs, humming bird-like wings and a nasty case of over bite,its body was short and fat with little or no tail ,if there was one it looked like one of those clubs with the spiked steel ball on the end,I'm not good with naming weapons,the skin was bumpy and dark brown on top the underneath was a pale tan color.

Finally the Terrible Terror,which was my favorite, was very small, around the size of a large cat,it was defiantly the dragon that looked the most like a colors varied from Terror to Terror but it seemed like most of them where either green with red horns on their heads and spikes going down there spike all the way to the end of their tails or a burnt orange with red horns on their heads and spikes going down there spike all the way to the end of their tails,the color of the wings always matched the horns.

We sat close to the small fire the cold of the night had long since creeped into the cave,Hiccup would get up every couple of minutes to go to the mouth of the cave and listen for the raid to see if we could leave yet. I had to stay down by the fire,Hiccup said I was even more defenseless than he would be if a dragon found us,that and he didn't want me moving around still. Since when was he a Healer?

"Those dragons are really determined to take it all this time"Hiccup sighed ,settling back down next to me.

" How long has it been going on?"

"It started a little after you passed out,when the sun had set"

"I still can't believe you carried me and the basket,"I chuckled,hiding my awe,not wanting him to get a big ego over it .

Hiccup shrugged trying to brush it off ,but a faint smile made the corner of his lips turn up "I figured if I left the basket,you'd yell at me for leaving it behind when we spent so much time today filling it up,and if I took the basket first and came back for you,you'd just kill me straight out"

I laughed and bumped my shoulder against his playfully "Probably"

We went silent again after that,every once in a while we'd hear a dragon in the distance,eventually it got so late that the fire was going out,Hiccup left the cave to find kindling for it. I sat alone in the dimming and flickering light trying not to drift off,today had drained me,but the idea of sleeping alone in a cave during a dragon attack kept sleep at Hiccup was back carrying an arm full of sticks,leaves,and a couple of logs,the fire was blazing again in no time thanks to him.

Hiccup dropped down next to me,not really saying anything, and ended up gazing at the fire. I started nodding off,Hiccup looked to awake for me to worry about a dragon catching us off guard.

" Remember what we were talking about earlier? Before I turned and you fell ? " Hiccup asked suddenly turning towards me.

I blinked a couple of times trying to wake up " Mm hmm "

"Well I've been thinking..."He trailed off,he reached up and rubbed the back of his head with the arm that wasn't next to me "No one really wants us around,and we're only a burden to the tribe"

This woke me up more,I put a hand on his shoulder "Hiccup..." I'd never heard him talk like this before.

He shook his head looking frustrated "No, listen to me" my hand fell from his shoulder,and he started talking again " If it ever gets to the point were we just can't take it anymore..."Hiccup met my gaze, he was being serious with both had been to the edge of our breaking points before,I was sure now I wasn't the only one in the cave that had contemplated leaving the village "Let's run away together"

Dead silence hung in the air,I stared at Hiccup in shock,out of the two of us I figured something this crazy would be my territory,he defiantly had a point though. I answered in less than minute,Hiccup had been waiting for my answer quietly.

"You've been thinking about this for a long time haven't you?"I mumbled,was he that disliked? that he'd be willing to run away with a girl he barely knew.

"Yeah,especially since I met you" I gave him a odd look one of my eyebrows was raised

"I could tell you were just as unhappy as I was,it was all over your face whenever one of us mentioned the tribe"

I shook my head,I knew I was easy to read,but I thought I had trained myself well enough not to do that anymore. "How did you-"

"It was easy for me to see the only other misfit in the village " he said looking up at the mouth of the cave,it was well into the night now,another dragon roar sounded in the distance.

I chuckled,thinking back to...what was it? Maybe two months ago that we met and I had thought of him as ' the other misfit '.

Hiccup looked back at me "So?,What do you think? "

I grinned like an idiot, Hiccup pulled back a little."Well,you're crazy,I know I am,and misfits should stick together,so why not?" Screw the tribe.

Hiccup joined me in grinning like an idiot,we settled back down again just lean against the wall,silence settled in as well,then broke again soon enough.

"We'll need some type plan then..."Hiccup sighed then started counting off on his fingers "..need a place to go,supplies,a way to get there..."

I grabbed his hand and pulled it down,shaking my head "We'll start tomorrow,we've done enough today"

"What is today,but yesterday's tomorrow" he said lamely

I elbowed him in the ribs "Smart ass"

"You cuss?" he stared at me in disbelief,did I seem petite and girly to him or something?

I gave a sly grin "I'm not supposed to,but I do"

"I knew you had a dark side" then he looked down and his face went red "Ah,you're still..."

I was still holding his hand,heat rushed up to my face and I let go like he was poisonous or something"...Sorry,that fall must have really screwed me up"

After that we just drifted off into our own worlds,staring at the bond fire with such intensity,you'd think it would ask what we wanted. I couldn't help but notice that Hiccup had really long fingers,then I caught myself glancing down at mine. Since when did I feel small? Was there such a thing as reverse puberty? I decided to ask Thistle later.

"What do you do for fun?" I asked,tired of the silence.

Hiccup frowned a little then looked up at me " I draw a little,otherwise not much"he looked down at me and smiled "What do you do?"

It went on like that for a long time ,we laughed and joked around for a while,but fell asleep eventually,little did we know what would happen the next day.

R&R please


	4. Chapter 4

**(Refer to chapter 1)**

_A.N-Due to some horrible anonymous reviewers I've blocked anonymous reviews.I apalogize in advance to the innocent anonymous reviewers._

Something warm was wrapped around me,I clung to it,I loved warm things and on top of that it smelt good too,like Lemon grass. Maybe Thistle was letting me sleep in today and had started the fire,and lemon grass was the main ingredient in the medicine,that sort of scenario happened all the was snoring?

_"Something isn't right"_

I yawned a little,and nuzzled the warm thing I had thinking it was a pillow,then I opened my froze. I was ..._snuggling_..._**with Hiccup **_,but I didn't seem to be the only one that had enjoying it. Hiccup had one arm around my waist,and had been resting his chin against my head until I had pulled back,but that didn't stop him from using my shoulder as a boy even had a smile on his face,I was very torn by now,on one hand I _very _much liked this,on the other,part of me was screaming _"He's your friend! ,your__** only friend! **__,and just a friend at that! Hiccup's __**asleep**__ for Thor's sake,he can't help what he dose! __**Get your hormones in check women!**__ "_

The later part of me won out,I didn't need or want to turn into a sappy, love struck teenage girl,I sighed and preceded on waking Hiccup,we needed to get back to the village.

I shook his shoulder a little jarring his head "Hiccup,Hiccup?Come on, get up! " Hiccup's snoring stopped and his eyes scrunched up,like he was trying to ignore me and stay asleep "Hiccup wake up already" I gave him one more good shake and he let out a groan and opened his eyes,at that point he realized what he'd been doing to me and shot backwards,I tried not to laugh.

"I-uh I didn't-I" Hiccup stammered,he was breathing heavily like he'd just won a race or something

"I didn't know you were a snuggler too" I laughed,hating myself on the inside for saying that,now he'd know I did it back,but once again that other part was thinking that it wasn't far if he took the blame for being the snuggling instigator.

Hiccup caught on straight away,his eyes got big as he stood up,I followed suit "You mean we were both-?"he asked his voice was a little high pitched

I blushed,"Yeah" and continued looking at the ground between us.

The Awkward silence was starting to become maddening Hiccup was the first to speak "We should go " he walked over to the forgotten basket on the other side if the cave as I stamped out the embers of the walk back was quiet, I don't think either of us knew what to say,when we reached the village we separated and headed to our own houses,me finally taking the basket for once.

Thistle was tending to burns on Viking when I got back,she saw me and dropped what she was doing "Where have you been hiding?"

I sighed and dropped the basket,Thistle pulled a chair out of the corner for me,the Viking gave a groan,she looked over her shoulders and snorted,then sat down across from me in her own chair. Thistle looked at me expectantly,I frowned ,What was she expecting? A great adventure or something?

"Hiccup and me were out at Raven Point when the attack happened,we decided it was best just hide out and ended up in a cave for the night "

Thistle's eye brows raised "You were with Hiccup again? And I assume nothing happened?"

My mouth dropped open,was she serious? My mind immediately went to the Snuggling incident,I looked down at the floor

_"That was a complete accident on both sides"_

A groan emitted from the Viking on the cot in the corner,Thistle turned to the Viking " You're fine you great hulking baby,it's only a couple of small burns " She turns back to me "Anyway,you were saying?"

I shook my head "Nothing" I stood up and gestured to the basket " There are your herbs," I headed to the ladder that lead to the loft above the Healer's den that was mine. "I'm taking a nap...or something "Thistle didn't stop me,I guess things were slow even with the attack.

Up in the loft,I was sitting on my bed,wondering what I should mind drifted back to the incident from this morning,eventually I fell asleep but not before I decided to lock the Snuggling incident away in the back of my head,there was no reason to think of it again,it was embarrassing .

Nothing else would happen for a while,we'd been friends a couple of months now,it would be my 14th birthday soon. The 14th birthday is a big event in a villager's life,at 13 we were allowed to start helping during a dragon attack,putting out fires and getting the elderly to 14 we could start dragon training,if we completed training we were valued as full members of the tribe,though we still had to listen to our parents.

The 14th birthday wasn't a big deal to me,in fact ,I detested it , a 14th birthday was when parents started looking for a potential bride or groom,of course the marriage could only happen if the boy was at least 17 and the girl 16 1/2,the engagement though could be announced right away courting was only part of the problem,all the other kids would get to go to dragon training,I being the heir to the Elder was not aloud to fight,who ever did rank first in dragon training,in my age group,would be assigned to protect me. Which meant I would be stuck with a complete and total stranger who would be following me almost 24/7 until I got a husband,it was also common sense that it was more than likely I would marry that stranger if it was a guy,that's what happened to the current Elder.

My life sucked and the weeks leading up to my birthday seemed to get worse and worse,it started with Hiccup getting called up to talk to the Elder,he was nervous,there was no need for him to Elder was a kind ,sweet old lady,but when it came to business,she was sharp as a tack and as direct as they I didn't like to be around her a lot,just because of my distaste for the job,I did start my dual apprenticeship soon,dividing my time between her and Thistle,I guess I had to suck it up.

A Viking named Polter had come up to us,giving a slight nod in my direction,but otherwise giving his complete attention to Hiccup.

"The Elder wants to speak with you,she says to meet her in front of the Mess hall ,"Polter glanced at me again "and to come alone"

Hiccup's eyebrows knitted together in confusion " but wh?-" he stopped,Polter was gone already.

I shrugged "You better go,what Granny wants,Granny gets" Hiccup looked around,trying to find a reason not to go,I pushed him in the direction of the Mess hall. "Go" As I watched him walk away I realized something,I was beginning to act like Thistle.

Later, much later ,the next day I finally found Hiccup again, he was sneaking threw the village with a basket.

"Hey,Hiccup "I said sneaking up behind Hiccup as he peaked around a corner,he squeaked and whipped himself around."T-Torrent,what a surprise "The basket in front of him was then inconspicuously shifted behind him.

"What's in the basket ?" I asked shifting from left to right trying to see if I could peek into the basket,but Hiccup kept blocking me,maybe there was dirty smut books or something in there,he was at that age.

I began to wine "Commmee ooonnnn Hiccup,tell me what it is! a troll?Did you find a sock?cause I'm missing one"

"Ah...no Troll or sock in here,nope,not a thing just passing this onto Gobber "He grabbed the strap of the bag and dragged it a bit farther away before putting it on his shoulder and walking away "I'll talk to you some other time I'm kinda busy right now" and with that he was gone,I stood there for a while jaw open,unsure what had just happened.

For three whole weeks Hiccup dodged me at every turn,every chance in counter at the Mess hall, ended with him grabbing a plate of food making up an excuse, and running out the door ,I'd almost given up on Hiccup completely forgotten about me? About our escape plans?

I was sitting in my room as I thought about this,it was the night before my birthday and the only one who would celebrate it with me would be Thistle.

I nodded in determination,I would spend tomorrow with Thistle,and then when she goes home for the night I would leave. a thin rope I'd been hanging from before,the idea to leave and start over had been gnawing at my mind forever now,and Hiccup abandoning me had been the last straw.

The next morning I got up early,I got dressed and began to pack things away,carefully choosing items for need,not want. I'd steal food supplies tonight when everyone was sleeping,then I'd take a small boat and let it drift away,the village would think I went out to reality I'd trek to the back of the Island,there where extra boats there in case the dragons ever took out to many during a raid,I'd wait a couple of days and steal one of those boats,they wouldn't know for months if ever that I'd used the first boat as a decoy.

A creek from the door below caught my attention,footsteps to small to be Thistle's and it was far to early as well,the light from the sun was just beginning to light up the horizon. I sat up and alert,a burglar was extremely rare in a small village,but still I didn't like the fact I didn't have a footsteps had began ascending the stairs that led up the storage area on the right side of the house, and my room the left.

The footsteps shuffled a little,then began moving,the storage door was opened, there was a small sigh,masculine in the slightest way, this was not in my favor. They stopped in front of my door this time,a few seconds later the door creaked open,in a moment of pure instinct I launched myself off the bed and tackled them to the ground. I heard the air rush out of the intruder,my fist raised up about to hit them in the face in a blind fury,until I made out words in the wheezing.

"T-Torrent-T" That familiar voice

My eyes snapped open,below me was Hiccup,eyes wide trying to catch his breath,my fist inches from his face. I pulled away ,stood up and crossed my arms,letting him get up on his own,Hiccup was not my favorite person at the Boy stood up putting his hands on his knees for support,my mind flashed back to the day we officially met.

"Why would you do that?"

"Why would you be sneaking into the Healer's den,much less my room before anyone in this god forsaken village is even awake! I thought you were a thief or something!"

Realization lit his eyes "Oooohhh"Hiccup stood up straight and rubbed the side of his arm,a guilty motion of his.

I tapped my foot, a frown on my face "Why exactly are you here anyway?"

"Ummm...Just a sec..."He left the room,I sighed his boy was definitely not my favorite person right now.

Hiccup poked his head around the door frame "Go sit on the bed and close your eyes,no peaking "

"What?"

"Just do it! I worked really hard on this and I won't let your grumpiness ruin the surprise!"

I jumped back off the bed angry now 'The only reason I'm _grumpy _is because a certain _friend _who has been ignoring me for almost a month,broke into my room and about scared me to death !" I began clenching and unclenching my fists.

"And you'll see why as soon as you sit down and close your eyes!"

I sat back down still angry and eyes closed,I heard Hiccup coming closer "I swear Hiccup if this is a joke or something stupid I'm going to hurl you out through second story window behind me" Something long fell in my lap,Hiccup sat down next to me.

"Okay...Open"

I gasped

So what do you think it is? You know I realized something really weird the other day,I was watching the movie and started thinking "Wow Gobber's voice sounds really familiar " and then I figured out it was Craig Ferguson. I'd been watching his show for a long time now and just figured that out...I'm a slow one...


	5. Chapter 5

Well,here it is at long last. I don't think it's that great but hey,this chapter serves some type of point,thanks for being somewhat patient guys,and for those of you that reviewed and didn't get a reply back ,I'm sorry. For some reason the E-mail link was deemed outdated and I couldn't reply,but thanks for all the reviews guys,it means a lot. And sorry if it seems a little rushed I wanted to finish this while I still had the urge to type this story.

**(Refer to chapter 1)**

_My_ staff sat on my lap,_my _staff. It was beautiful,at least to me it was. You may be asking right now what's so special about a staff? Even though it's a Elder symbol I was actually exited about it,but because of my tantrum over Hiccup disappearing on me I'd forgotten all about it.

Getting your first staff was a coming of age tradition,it's only made twice for every Elder and Apprentice alike. The first staff is when the apprenticeship becomes official,and it's made by someone the current Elder deems important enough to the soon to be owner,most of the time it's a close family member.

The staff itself was something,I'd seen illustrations of other staffs in the village records,but nothing like this. It was a warm brown color and was polished so much I was afraid if I grabbed it ,the staff would fly out of my hands,like one of the rare bars of soap in the village. The staff was at least a foot and a half taller them me.

The first three feet was just smooth wood,then small intricate craving went around it like a story,each carving was separated by a small gold band. Wolves ran in a pack in the background was a forest,above that was a couple of smaller wolves these were jumping in the air, it seemed like they had a happy but feverish look stretched across there faces,maybe that was just me. As I turned the staff the jumping wolves slowly faded into nothing,then there was a breaking the carvings wear my hand would have went. The final carving was the same back ground of were the jumping wolves were,now there were large birds in place of them,flying into the sun.

Finally as my eyes reached the top,after the carvings wooden vines with small leaves began weaving around what was the top,making a sphere of sorts inside was a large almost see threw bright blue stone with green and gold flecks all over it. I had now idea how Hiccup had even made this,it looked like it would take months if not a year or two.

I stared down at the staff studying the details over and over again until I felt Hiccup nudge me with his shoulder "Well,what do you think?" he asked ,there was an edge of nervousness in the chuckle that followed.

" It's … " I started unsure how to describe it at first "It's great, I love it!"I said pulling it closer to me almost like I was hugging the staff. Hiccup watched me a few seconds before grinning,looking down and rubbing the back of his head, I smiled "Really I love it ,thank you "

Hiccup looked back up at me still smiling " That's great , I'm glad you do … "After that it got awkward again,Hiccup watched his feet as they kicked back and fourth "Sooo what did you have planned for today?" he asked standing up and clasping his hands behind his back and stretching .

" I didn't really have anything planned, thought that it was just me and Thistle today"I said shrugging and then noticed the effect of the words on Hiccup , he flinched. I could have gone on a guilt trip and really laid it into him and I did think about it,but when I felt the staff in my hands,the same one the Hiccup seemed to have worked on so hard and had both his hands bandaged because of it,I just didn't have it in me."This was why you were avoiding me ? "

Hiccup,who had wandered over my window and was looking down at the village square with mild interest nodded absent mindlessly and said " You know,I like looking at the village like this "

"Like what ?" I asked coming up beside him and looking out the window. The village was just beginning to wake up,shops were slowly opening up,smoke was slipping out of several chimneys,the sound of a baby crying could be heard a few houses away, and someone was screaming at a rooster to shut up,it was a typical morning.

When I said that to Hiccup he shook his head "No look again,the village is peaceful for once,the sun's just coming up,look at the fog on the ground,the ice crystals are catching the sun and it's making the square sparkle"

"I never noticed that it did that before " I muttered leaning out the window to get a better look.

Hiccup leaned out the window beside me,the wind blew a little and the fog swirled causing the colors to shift momentarily"I've seen it from my room,but it was never this bright. The problem about it is soon the villagers will come out and trample it and they won't care about it at all"

"You have an interesting way of looking at things you know that? It's so … un-viking like

" I said smiling slightly resting my head in one and and leaning on the hand's connected elbow.

"That's not always a good thing "

"Who said it wasn't?"

While we chatted ,I couldn't help but feel those crystals on the village square and the villagers trampling them could be called some type of metaphor ,_ "Then again , "_ I thought _" maybe my new found old age is already getting to me "_ I laughed a little at this.

Hiccup shoot me a strange look and asked "Why are you laughing?"

"It's nothing " I said looking down at a specific part of the square trying to hide my smile

We stood there for a while watching the crystals disappear from the warming sunlight and villagers,it had become an oddly comfortable silence ,maybe that was what was so nice about our friendship , that we didn't have to spend every moment of it yapping at each other.

"Hey Torrent ? "

"Yeah ? "

"Happy birthday "

The rest of the day I spent with Thistle or Hiccup,at first when Hiccup and I both came down from my room when Thistle came in for the morning she was suspicious ,but when I showed her the staff all that melted away as she inspected it. Thistle smiled at us as she handed it back over and told us to wait as she found something among the various cupboards in the den and then brought it back to us.

"This,"She said bringing a semi-large, tan, leather messenger bag " is for you"

I took it and put it on,Thistle was watching me intently making me smile"Thanks"

After seeing Thistle we decided to just wander around the outskirts of town and eventually wandered back up to Raven Point .I was slumped in front of the same boulder we sat on before watching the sun start to set,Hiccup leaned against it's side saying he wanted too stand.

My mind eventually wandered down darker paths,I felt my face starting to frown as I watched the seagulls hover just beyond the cliffs.

" _Even though this has been a really nice day,it's just the start of something in my life that I don't want at all,talk about your wolf in sheep's clothing"_I though running a thumb along the patterns of my staff. _"I wonder what that old women has in-store for me,I wonder if she ever felt this trapped when she turned 14"_I frowned more looking down at the staff that was layed across my lap,trying to imagine the Elder at my age _"Didn't she ever want something more than just sitting on the side lines and directing from afar?"_

The thought that the beautiful staff in my lap,that Hiccup had worked so hard on was just another symbol of the broken and repressed dreams of my predecessors entered my mind,I swallowed the tight lump of sadness and fear in my throat that had been building up and shook my head.

"Torrent,What's wrong?"

Stupidly I looked up upon hearing concern in Hiccup's voice,the look on his face was difficult to describe,sad,hurt,worried,afraid and angry all in the span of second as he sat down next to me.

"You're tearing up..."He stated quietly, I put a hand up to my checks,feeling small watery trails from the tears,I could feel that ball of fear and sadness add on shame,anger, and even more sadness and fear as I looked down at my tear stained palms

Meanwhile Hiccup had grabbed my staff and put it next to us,and was using one of his sleeves to take care of the last of my tears, muttering something about déjà vu .

I let out a shakey laugh getting it,I'd done the same thing to him the first time we officially met.

"Now,why the sudden waterworks?" Hiccup asked looking at me with relative concern,as he leaned back on both hands,he sure was odd for a guy,actually asking what was wrong with me,most viking men would quake in fear of a woman's emotions. We are scary creatures after all.

I sighed and looked back down at my clasped hands for a while the only things happened for a while was the gulls cawing and the sunset starting to paint the entire island. I felt a tinge of guilt creep into me as I thought about not telling Hiccup everything,"I don't want to-" I just felt so vulnerable at the idea,but the day we met he swallowed his pride and told me what he'd done.

Hiccup said my name in a suddenly almost strained and demanding voice"Torrent..."

"_He deserves an honest answer"_

"I-I I'm just a little overwhelmed,that's all" I managed to get out,still looking down at my hands.

"With?" Hiccup prompted,raising an eyebrow

"Well..."I started,still looking down at my hands,I clenched and unclenched them taking a deep breath before launching into an explanation of the whole mess,the body guard, the isolation,the possibility of a semi-arranged marriage to whoever the turned out to be ."And on top of all that I don't like any of the kids our age minus you,so how am I going to deal with some idiot following me night and day?"

Hiccup sighed and rubbed one of his shoulders "Geesh,I really don't know what to say here"

"Don't say anything then" I said shaking my head "I've never had someone to even talk to about this stuff before,you know how adults are,they'll just try to talk over us,saying that we're over exaggerating the situation" I stopped to roll my stiff shoulders and smiled at Hiccup and continued "What I'm trying to say is ,I'm just happy to have someone to actually say these things to and get it all off my chest,you don't have to come up with something insightful and witty to say back"

"Yeah,but saying nothing wouldn't be helping either."He said looking at the ocean , Hiccup's forehead was scrunched up with concentration.

"Well," I shrugged,gaining his attention "I know this may sound bad considering you just sat there and listened to me whine,but it doesn't really concern you. You can step out of this easily and leave me to handle my own problems,I'm a big girl and this isn't the first time I've done this"

"_But this was the worst one and it has been a along time too"_

"I can pick up my own pieces, I always have"

"...Do you still want to run-away?"He asked quietly,looking at me out of the corner of his eye.

I sighed deciding to tell him what I had planned on doing this morning,it would come up eventually,I looked back down at my hands and spoke "Actually before you explained why you were avoiding me this morning,I was planning on heading out tonight"

Hiccup blinked and asked me in a very evenly measured voice"Why?"

If I hadn't looked at him I wouldn't have noticed the hurt look in his eyes,I answered as best I could"Between the impending doom I felt from my birthday and you avoiding me like the plague,I felt like it was the best option"

"So you were going to leave and not ask if I wanted to go with?"Hiccup asked,the evenness in his voice was starting to disappear. 

I answered bluntly"Does it make sense to ask the person avoiding you to come with you on a trip were you're pretty much dependent on each other for survival-to answer that question,no not really"

Hiccup gave me a small,bitter smile accepting what I said as common sense "True...but do you still want to leave?"

"Mm" I bit my lip and thought for a moment before I said anything else,it hadn't really crossed my mind since that morning"Sort of, I mean I'm still freaked out and overwhelmed,but to leave before my ' job ' has even started seems like a pretty cowardly thing to do,so if I did leave right now the guilt would just hang over me for the rest of my life,I don't want that"

Hiccup got up,focusing on brushing off his pants as he spoke "So now you're going to stick around at least for a little while,even if it is a little painful ?"

"Yeah" I said once again in a blunt manner as he offered me a hand and pulled me up,I grabbed my bag and strapping my staff to my back because I didn't feel like carrying it in my hands. We left for the village after that because if we didn't get back soon Thistle would worry about me.

"So,"Hiccup said quietly as we were getting ready to cross back over the village border, he stopped just a couple feet before the treeline,I followed his lead "about earlier. You said I don't need to say anything,but I can't help but feel like I need to say something."

"And that is?" I asked,clasping my hands behind my back and rocking back and forth on my heels, I honestly wanted to get home and go to bed, I always felt better after a night of sleep.

"Next time you start feeling bad enough that you think you might cry come find me,even if I'm asleep or working. You really shouldn't keep something like that pent up and don't brush me off saying it was nothing either,if it was nothing you wouldn't care enough to cry Torrent"

I smiled "There's that witty and insightful comment I was talking about earlier,I only had to wait another hour for it apparently .As for that offer...thanks,I'll keep it in mind" 

"Good"

"But,now I need a favor" I said stepping up closer to Hiccup,he raised an eyebrow looking interested,a thought had occurred to me as he spoke before , I needed to make sure I didn't show any signs of crying.

"And that would be?"

"Can you tell I was crying?"I asked looking at him expectantly

Hiccup stared at me "That's kind of -"

"I mean it's been a while but if I go back and Thistle's there,she'll probably be able to tell and then I'll have to endure an extreme amount of badgering " I explained quickly,cutting him off.

Hiccup's mouth formed a small O and he stepped a bit closer to get look at me . "Well...no tear stains,but your eyes are still a little red and your eyelashes are kind of all over the place"

I used one of me hands and tried to smooth them out "Any better?"

Hiccup frowned and shook his head "No,here let me try"He moved his hand up to my face,causing me jerk and close to close my eyes in reaction "Hey,hold still!"

"Sorry just wasn't expecting that"I muttered relaxing and closing my eyes,then I felt Hiccup's thumb run over each eyelid. I blinked when he was done and frowned "You licked your thumb before you did that , didn't you? "

"Maybe"Hiccup laughed,smiling sheepishly at me.

I grinned,which caught Hiccup off guard, he stopped laughing immediately. "If anyone else did that to me they'd be on the ground bleeding by now" I said stepping closer with a bigger grin on my face making him go off-balance for a second,he waved his arms in the air as I spoke "I really don't like other people's spit touching me..."

"What are you-"

And with that I pushed him back down the hill Hiccup rolled a good thirty feet back before a tree stopped him,I snickered as he groaned and looked up to glare at me. Hiccup staggered as he stood up,still glaring at me before taking off in a dead sprint in my direction,he was actually pretty fast considering he was going uphill.

I stood there stunned for a second then took off laughing as I heard him coming up behind me shouting "You are so dead!"


End file.
